Valentina M.

Hello/Nǐ hǎo! I'm Valentina Milenković, 22 years old, and I have a passion for traveling, photography, comfort, authenticity, art, nature, animals, and health. People who know me would describe me as calm, brave and independent! I don't eat animals, but I am strong and have a lot of energy.

My primary motivation for joining this program is to step outside my comfort zone. I have a deep desire to challenge myself and explore new experiences. The opportunity to meet people from various backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives is particularly appealing.

Language learning is another huge reason for me. I'm eager to engage myself in a new language, not just to improve my linguistic ability, but also to gain a deeper understanding of the culture associated with it. I'm actively seeking a significant change of environment, both geographically and experientially, to gather diverse experiences, I want to embrace every opportunity for personal growth.

My experience with children has mainly been within my family, but I also gained valuable experience during an Erasmus+ program. On that program, I was responsible for a group of teenagers. My daily duties included ensuring they had all the necessary equipment for training or lectures, addressing any accommodation issues, mediating conflicts between roommates, and generally checking in on their well-being. If I noticed any issues, I would gently point them out. I also served as a translator and made sure everyone completed their tasks properly. It was a significant responsibility, but also a truly wonderful experience.

With my aunts' children, I love spending quality time talking, enjoying their company, and teaching them new things. I'm always interested in how they're feeling and how school is going; conversation is very important to me. We often go out for food or dessert, and we play a lot of games, mostly board games like 'Ne ljuti se ć oveć e', Speed Run, and Monopoly. I also enjoy going for walks with them.

During a visit to my aunt in Slovenia, where she has a son and daughter, I became part of their daily routine. We'd drive them to swimming lessons and watch them train, take them to school, and bring them home with musical instruments like a guitar and a speaker. We also played with LEGOs, with toys, and PlayStation. I learned that the son, being older, planned to help his mother look after his sister to save pocket money for new phone, and the daughter, who loves puzzles, declared she'd be a CEO when she grows up! It was a beautiful experience, though too short, becoming a part of their active and art-filled lives.

More recently, a teenage cousin visited me. She's an excellent student and plays the piano. We talked a lot, and I tried to encourage her to think more openly and to not limit people based on things like religion. Since she's not very financially secure, I advised her to focus on quality over brands when buying things. I acted as her personal guide around the city, took her out to eat, snapped some great pictures (if I do say so myself!), and even bought her a small present. That's one of my latest experiences.

Why am I the one? I adapt quickly to new environments and approach my work responsibly, always striving for improvement. I'm partially familiar with Chinese culture, I have Chinese friends, know a little Mandarin, and enjoy some Chinese series and music. I believe I'm excellent with both children and parents, likely because my age allows me to connect on various topics, from older to younger interests. English is my strong suit, I even prefer it over Serbian.

I'd make learning creative and engaging, thinking, art, and physical activities. For example, we could prepare a Serbian meal, snack, or dessert together. I could share interesting historical moments, making them more engaging! We could also explore Serbian art by drawing traditional shapes and ornaments from national attire, or even recreate famous Serbian portraits, similar to my own art project where I masked myself as the 'Girl with a Pearl Earring', We could even learn the traditional Serbian dance, Kolo, together, as I don't know it either!

Last thing I would like to let you know is I genuinely want to become a friend to the family, building a close connection through my efforts and simply by being myself.

Thank you/Xié Xié for reading this far and for taking the time to get to know me. I'd love to set up a video call to meet you and your family perhaps we'll be a perfect match! See you soon!